Brake-beam



' (No Model.)

J. PEARCE. BRAKE BEAM. No. 444,159. Patented Jan.6, 1891.

WITNESSES UNITED v STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES PEARCE, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

BRAKE-BEAM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 444,159, dated January6, 1891.

Application filed November 25, 1890- Serial No. 372,583. (No model.)

. To whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES PEARCE, of Pittsburg, county of Allegheny,State of Pennsylvania, have inv nted or discovered a new and usefulImprovement in Brake-Beams; and I do hereby declare the following to bea full, clear, concise, and exact description thereof, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification,in which-like letters indicating like parts- Figure l is a plan view ofmy improved brake-beam. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same asviewed on a line parallel with the direction of the car. Fig. 3 is apartial section, taken in the lines: acof Fig. 1, across the centerpiece, and showing the angle at which the center piece stands to receivethe lever which imparts motion to the beam. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectiontaken on the line'y y of Fig. 1.

My present invention relates to certain improvements in brake-beams forthe equipment of both passenger-cars and freight-cars; and it consistsin a brake-beam composed of a double back piece-that is to say, a backpiece made not of a single solid piece, but of two pieces of metalcombined, as hereinafter more fully described, and shown in connectionwith the drawings.

In the construction of my improved brakebeam I employ, in connectionwith the double back piece, a detachable center piece, which centerpiece receives the lever which actuates the brake-beam in the ordinaryway, and by means of which the brake is applied to the wheels, and thiscenter piece extends from the double back piece to the front brace,which strengthens and supports the back piece and also holds the centerpiece in place.

Heretofore in the manufacture of brakebeams the beam has beenconstructed of a solid piece, either of wood or metal, which, as a rule,stood on its edge, and the center piece, which has been in use inconnection therewith, was made stationary, being rigidly attached to thebrake-beam in such a way that it could not be removed without cuttingthe beam, so that in case of an accident to the beam it involved thecutting of the beam in at least two places, in order to take out thecenter piece, while in my improved form of construction it is notnecessary in case of accident to cut the beam, as the center piece isdetachable and may be readily removed, thus saving the use of either anew centerpiece or a new beam, as the case may be.

In order to more fully explain my invention I will refer to thedrawings, in which A is the brake-beam as a whole, and a and a are thetwo pieces composing the double back piece. The ends of these pieces aand a are brought together and solidly welded with the ends of the braceO, which passes between the two pieces a and a, the whole being adaptedto receive the holder for the brakeshoe and the brake-shoe itself, whichis applied in the ordinary manner. The center piece is shown as B, andthis is composed of the two pieces I) and b, which are welded togetherat the outer end, which passes through the brace G, being rounded forthat purpose. The other ends of the pieces Z) and b are turned with aneye to receivethe bolt 1), which passes through the double back piecesand the center piece. The two pieces I) and b are spread apartsufficiently to receive the end of a lever, which must stand at an angleon account of its being under the floor of the car.

The brace O is made substantially in the ordinary way, except that theends are fiat and are welded between the two parts a and a of the backpiece, and after leaving the point of junction, as at d, a twist isgiven the brace, which makes it then stand upon its edge, so as to bringthe flat surface to bear against the shoulder of the outer end of thecenter piece.

I prefer that the brake-beam and center piece should be made ofwrought-iron, although malleable iron may be used in the center piece,if desired. By this form of construction I produce a brake-beam which ismuch stronger than a beam made in the old style and much moreeconomical, both in material and in the time required to construct it.It is also much less liable to get out of order, and the fact of thecenter piece being removable eifects a great saving oftentimes where incase of an accident the beam is broken.

Having described my improvement, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent of the United States, is-

The combination, in a brake-beam, of a back piece composed of twoseparate pieces and :1

In testimony whereof. I have hereunto set l'ront brace and a removablecenterpiece, the

my hand.

ends of the pieces composing the back piece 5 and the ends of the frontbrace being: solidly 1 JAMES PEARCE. 5 welded together and the removablecenter piece extending from the center of the back \Vitnesses:

piece to the center of the front brace, substantially as and for thepurposes specified.

SAML. \Ylcrrr, WM. F. CRAIG.

